Originally Posted by Chris_DeltaCustExp

Hi everyone...

I wanted to address some of your comments about Delta's 737-900ER configuration. While 180 seats is a more dense configuration than you may have seen on a 737, we achieved that seat count without sacrificing customer comfort. In a nutshell, we were able to include 180 seats by optimizing every inch of available real estate on the aircraft. The use of the slim-line seat model (B/E Aerospace Pinnacle) also improves personal space but was not the primary method of increasing seat count.

Looking at some of Delta's recent aircraft modification programs can help put things in perspective. We increased the seat density on our MD88 and 757-300 (coming soon) fleets and as a result of the creative use of space, removal of galleys, addition of soft class dividers, etc. we were able to actually increase the number of seats on these aircraft while simultaneously increasing the average pitch.

Our old MD88 configuration had 142 seats with 14 YC seats pitched at 30” pitch while our new configuration has 149 seats with no seats at 30” pitch -- plus we added two FC seats.

On the 757-300, our current configuration has 224 seats with a whopping 120 seats at 30” pitch while our new configuration will have 234 seats and 30 seats at 30” pitch.

Delta’s average seat pitch is 31”. And while the 737-900ER seat map on delta.com indicates 30-31” pitch in Economy, only about 10% of the YC seats are pitched at 30”.

Like all major players in the airline industry, we're always looking to increase the efficiency of our fleet. Our friends in Dallas recently unveiled their new E175 and A319 configurations, which feature all YC seats pitched at 30". And our friends in Chicago recently introduced their new A319 and A320 configuration with all YC seats also pitched at 30".

I hope that provides some context and I'm confident that customers will enjoy the ride on the -900ER.

We've got a few more big fleet upgrades in the hopper...stay tuned for more details soon.

Chris-